Meet "Dosojin" and celebrate Little New Year in 'Dosojin' festival!
"Dosojin", guardian deity, festival is an event with a long tradition held in "Koshogatsu", First Full Moon Festival or literally Little New Year. Traditionally the first full moon of the lunar new year has been celebrated, and many events associated with it are held in many local communities of the area during the 14th-16th days of the lunar New Year.
Among the spectacles of the festival, following are the highlights:
1. "Goshinnboku tate", sacred tree erection, especially a process of erecting the sacred tree (30 - 40m long) through concerted efforts by community residents
2. "Dondon yaki", a bonfire ceremony called New Year's bonfire
I went to one in Kawaguchi district in the morning and the above photos are from it. 'Goshinboku', the sacred tree, to be erected was so large that it was taking hours of efforts by community residents. Also notice that 'Dosojin' of the festival here has a spherical shape.
The events are only at this time of the year. So, experience local traditional culture with community-level varieties if you happen to be around in town.